Have you ever wondered how many hours people work in a day? Determining worked hours is essential because it dramatically impacts society and an individual’s life. Nowadays, a vast number of people labor remotely or from home, so they need help to create a balance between jobs and life.
In the following content, we will explore the factors influencing work hours, global trends, and what are the famous unproductive worker’s activities.
What are Work Hours?
A working day includes commuting, working actively, attending meetings, and participating in other work-related activities. Full-time employees operate 40 hours a week in the United States. It means they labor five days a week for eight hours each day.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average yearly business hours are 2,080, assuming 52 weeks a year. Throughout the year, many organizations allow some breaks for work balance. The time off includes paid holidays, work absences, sick days, and paid time off.
Let’s assume that an employee takes ten days of paid time off and eight paid holidays, which means they take 18 workdays and will function 1,936 hours throughout the year.
Importance of Determining Work Hours
By tracking business hours, an individual can evaluate productivity levels and workload, plan efficiently, and force employers to follow labor regulations.
What Is the Difference Between Paid Holiday and Paid Time Off?
Paid Holiday
It means the public holidays that the federal government recognizes. Here are the eight federal government-recognized holidays.
- Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
- New Year’s Day
- Labor Day
- Inauguration Day
- George Washington’s Birthday
- Memorial Day
- Independence Day
Paid Time Off
The paid time off examples are as follows.
- Federally recognized holidays
- Sick days
- Personal Days
- Vacation Time
Ideal Work Hours Per Day to be Productive
Many researchers state that employees only actively work 4 hours and 12 minutes instead of hectic eight hours. They are involved in different unproductive activities to waste time instead of doing work. The following are the top findings:
| Activities | Unproductive Time |
| Exploring news websites | 1 hour, 5 minutes |
| Making calls with friends & family | 18 minutes |
| Finding New Jobs | 26 minutes |
| Checking Social Media Profiles | 44 minutes |
| Eating snacks | 8 minutes |
| Gossips with co-workers | 40 minutes |
| Preparing hot drinks | 17 minutes |
| Going for smoke breaks | 23 minutes |
| Texting | 14 minutes |
| Making food in the office | 7 minutes |
How to Track the Hours You Work?
- Manually by use of pen and paper
- Time clocks
- URL tracking
- GPS tracking
- Mobile apps
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